Manchester construction company Morgan Sindall working alongside Muse developments has produced a landmark building rising 23 stories, overlooking Manchester City Centre and the river Irwell in the thriving area of New Bailey.
We've been visiting this building since Morgan Sindall broke ground on the project and even prior to that on the adjacent property that was built prior to the Novella building going up, so it was amazing to be commissioned to complete imagery to capture the final project wrap-up.
External considerations
We set about capturing the unique location of the building and showing how the building looked when contrasted by night and day. The Manchester skyline changes dramatically when the sun drops away, so highlighting how the building looks throughout the day was a key consideration. The river Irwell runs directly alongside the property and adds further interest to the site with boats and other river users passing by.
With so many apartments close by and a significant 100ft crane construction on the opposite side of the river, the safe operation and flight of the drone were paramount. With this in mind, we prioritised days around very low wind and good visibility to maximise the safety of the video and stills capture.
Considering the interior
Internally the challenges were less about the weather, and more about composition, light quality and colour palette as we could choose the time of day to photograph and the weather wouldn't be an interference factor unless it was dark and raining. A bright overcast day was chosen to provide a soft exterior light, without casting hard shadows from a full sun day.
We concentrated on demonstrating the generous volume of space and well-furnished break-out spaces.
The interior decor is bathed in natural light provided by floor-to-ceiling windows that run the full aspect of the building. The ground floor wall coverings offer low-key lighting, which breaks up the communal spaces to offer relaxing places to socialise with other occupants of the building. The managed building offers fantastic city living facilities including a full gym and relaxation/meditation room.
Our approach was to keep the look natural, capturing the internal spaces using the available ambient light.
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